What do an experienced engineer in Chicago, a graduate medical student, an undergraduate computer sciences student, a football coach in Seattle, a graduate business student from Egypt, and a world-class figure skater have in common? They could take Dr. Jeffrey Wildfogel's "Psychology of Peak Performance" class together this summer: in the classroom, at work, or in the living room.

Discovering individual values, learning how to develop new assumptions and new paradigms, making decisions based on values rather than short-term success - these are tools in Wildfogel's course to succeed under the pressures of chaos and change. Wildfogel offers examples of practical application of these tools from his experience conducting training seminars at major corporations in Silicon Valley and coaching Olympic athletes and executives throughout business and industry. It is a course geared toward individuals from all walks of life, at any stage of life.

"We learn about the psychology of peak performance in teams, meeting in an informal setting with a lot of interaction between all kinds of people." Wildfogel assigns weekly "insight" papers, having students apply theory to some part of their lives and write about the experience. "I want as much detail as possible so I can give meaningful online feedback." Online feedback frees him from page "limits" of hard copy, so that he is more detailed in his own responses.

Wildfogel has taught through SCPD for eight years and remains passionate about his work. "It's a wonderful amalgamation of students, showing that anyone can be a peak performer, in any situation in life." Wildfogel laughs and adds, "Okay. I think everyone should take my course."